Governor Bruce Rauner and the Illinois General Assembly have been unable to pass a complete state budget since June 2015 and universities are suffering.

TO: Governor Bruce Rauner

For two consecutive years, since being sworn into office as the Governor of Illinois, you have failed to come to an agreement with members of the Illinois General Assembly on a balanced budget.

As a result of this budget impasse, funds appropriated to NIU continue to be less than the $91 million the Illinois Board of Higher Education has recommended we receive, according to a Feb. 23 Northern Star article.

Because NIU has not received the recommended budget since 2015, more and more cost-cutting efforts have been made on campus.

If Illinois lawmakers would put partisan squabbling aside and actually do their jobs, NIU would not have to operate on a bare-bones budget, professors would not be spending their own money on supplies that should be provided by their employers and students would not have to worry about what might happen if their Monetary Award Program grants are not covered by the state of Illinois.

“Last year, [Department of Communication faculty] were asked if we were willing to give up our [office] telephone to save money,” said communication professor Betty La France. “That was the beginning of a whole set of tightening practices … it was the first time I remember being asked, specifically, to give something up in terms of saving cash for the department.”

Because of these cost-cutting efforts, various NIU faculty members have resorted to purchasing some of their own office supplies — such as toner cartridges — or footing the bill for other expenditures, such as attending education conferences, as these expenses are no longer reimbursed by the state or NIU, according to La France.

While I appreciate that some faculty members are willing to tap into their own pockets for the benefit of their students, they should not have to. Funds at NIU are scarce, and some professors see no other option.

An argument could be made that these professors are not being asked to do so by NIU, which is true. However, I think it’s commendable when professors print hard copies of documents so students do not have to, especially when it entails purchasing their own toner cartridges for the printers in their office — after being told their department no longer had any available — as was the case for one of my professors.

Actions like these result in savings for students, as that’s one less thing we have to pay for.

“Not having a workable budget from the government in Springfield for the last two years has made a lot of hardships on every level of people involved at NIU,” said Kate Cady, associate professor in communication. “It really does seem to affect everybody: faculty, staff, students in all kinds of ways, so it’s a big problem.”

While the blame for the budget crisis in Illinois is not entirely yours, the buck does stop with you as a result of the governor ultimately having supreme executive power in the state, according to Article V of the Illinois Constitution.

Unless a compromise is reached with Democrats, which results in a balanced budget finally being passed, being re-elected for a second term seems unlikely. Constituents will not be inclined to vote for a Governor who has been unable to get a budget passed during his entire time in office.

If the objective is to be a one-term governor, then continue doing what you are doing or, in this case, continue doing what you are not doing. 

Sincerely,

Ian Tancun | Columnist